2014 in Review

I am excited to write this post because it is my first review post here on the new blog! I started this blog in the beginning of 2014, so my 2013 review post was over on my old blog. If you are interested in seeing the growth of my blog, you can read my reviews on my old blog from 2011, 2012, and 2013.

When I made the switch from my wordpress hosted blog to my self-hosted blog here, I knew it was a move I had to make. I wanted to have much more freedom over my website in regards to design, and I also wanted to be able to start making some money from my blog (must have a way to support my hobby and the time it takes me to write up these free tutorials and tips, right? 😉 ).

Even though it was a necessary move, it was also a little scary. My old blog had grown to have more than 1,000 pageviews a day, so I was almost starting from scratch! I’m pleased to say that by the end of 2014 I was getting a minimum of 2,500 pageviews a day here on the new blog!! I am thrilled with that, and can’t wait to see what the new year brings!! Oh, and I posted 103 blog posts. Admittedly, probably about 20-30 of those were re-posted from my old blog as they were posts that are very important and I didn’t want to let them get lost in the shuffle! For those who are interested in stats, here are a few more:

Looks like I accomplished all of the goals! Of course it helps that I didn’t add any numbers to the goals, haha! Actually I did have numbers on my actual written out goals that I taped onto my desk, I just didn’t share them. My goal was to create 8 free and 4 paid tutorials in 2014. I actually created TWENTY free tutorials! But I only created 2 new paid tutorials (the peacock and owl designs). Actually, the owls I created right at the end of 2013, so I guess really it was only one. Well, surely you guys as my audience can’t complain of the abundance of free tutorials this past year 😉

Number 1 on the list was also number one on the old blog for 2013. So many people search for how to make quilled roses! Number 2 on the list was only published a few months ago, yet it has the second highest views for the whole year, that shows how popular that is! I wouldn’t be surprised if it turned out to be number one for 2015. Number 3 is about using sealants, and that will be one of my focuses for 2015 as a lot of people wonder about that! The Malaysian flower posts are popular as well. It’ll be interesting to see which of these stick around on the top 5 for the coming year or if there will be brand new ones in the lead!

Time to look ahead for the new year! For 2015 I am planning:

I will create at least 3 new paid tutorials

I will create at least 12 new free tutorials

I will start up a new type of post with organized reviews of quilling and craft supplies I use and post at least 12 of these

I will end the year with an average of 5,000 pageviews a day on the blog.

I will make at least $500 a month combined with my quilled jewelry sales, paid tutorials, ads on the blog, and affiliate sales. I haven’t talked on the blog about what I do to make money, but it’s something I sometimes get questions about, so I will also be writing some posts about having online shops, ads on the blog, etc. for those who are interested. Obviously I don’t make a full time income on the blog, but I do need to make it worth my time. Just as a benchmark, I made approximately $300 a month on average in 2014, most of that was jewelry sales.

I will post at least 80 posts on the blog this year

Thanks so much for sticking with me throughout 2014. As always I welcome your feedback about the blog, what type of posts/tutorials you want to see, and any other questions or comments you have! I have truly enjoyed getting to know some new quillers this past year and can’t wait to see what 2015 brings. Thank you for a fabulous 2014!